Syrian tanks tightened their occupation of Hama and massed outside a defiant city in the east as President Bashar al-Assad ignored mounting world condemnation of attacks on protesters the United States says has killed 2,000 people opposing his rule.

At least 45 civilians were killed in a tank assault by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s forces to occupy the centre of Hama, an activist said on Thursday, in a sharp escalation of a military campaign aimed at ending an uprising against his rule.

Forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad shot dead 14 people on Tuesday in the Syrian city of Hama, activists said, and France called on the United Nations to adopt a firm stance in the face of “ferocious armed repression.”(more…)

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — One of the highest-level European delegations to visit this war-torn country in years has failed to persuade the Sri Lankan government to declare a temporary truce with ethnic Tamil rebels.

“The government is not ready to enter into any kind of cease-fire with the terrorists,” he said. “It is my duty to protect the people of this country. I don’t need lectures from Western representatives,” he said in a speech distributed by his office and quoted by the agencies.